NEBRASKA CITY – Open class vegetable superintendent Bob Brandt is retiring from the fair this year, but the onion legacy his grandmother helped inspire is expected to go on.

 Bob Brandt announces retirement from vegetable show

Even before Brandt became crops show superintendent in 2018, he his family were claiming the jumbo onion prize and set the record at 2.65 lbs prior to 2007 and 2.7 pounds in 2009. This year’s champion, John Weber, grew his 3 lb 1 oz onion in the same garden Brandt’s grandmother had tilled.

 

 

Brandt: “She took me up there for a couple of years where we had a garden. She finally says, ‘well, what have  you learned Bob?’ I thought well, whenever you plant something you always seem to water it, and she said ‘that’s one of the best things  you can ever do in gardening, when you plant something water it right away. And then she got me into mulching. Mulching is … if you have a garden and don’t mulch, you’re missing out.”

Brandt said it might take a breakthrough in genetics for anyone to break the onion record of 4 lb 2.2 oz set by Duane Hansen in 2023.

 

 

Judge Duane Nohavec said the growing season followed a warm, dry winter and a warm March. Many gardeners planted their onions in March and there wasn’t a hard frost after that. Even April-planted tomatoes were fine, but he said they may have been impacted by recent humidity.

He said the start of the fair five days later than in year’s past was evident.

Nohavec: “The onions were bigger and nicer this year and this one guy he had perfect carrots and I think carrots are a longer season.”

He said there was also nice cabbage and an usually-large selection of apples.

 

Nohavec: “I don’t remember we had very many apples before normally. Yeah, they were ready to go.”

He reminded exhibitors not to wash or rinse their potatoes, but just rub off of the dirt. He said they meet show rules and  keep longer that way.

This year’s premier gardener was Duane Hansen, who had 20 entries placing.

 

2025 Premier Gardener

Duane Hansen of Syracuse (20 winning entries)

Largest cabbage

Duane Hansen 15.4 lbs

Largest onion

John Weber of Unadilla, 3 lb, 1 oz.

Largest bell pepper

Dan Swanson of Nebraska City, 10.1 oz.

Largest potato

Ike and Hays West of Unadilla 1 lb, 7.9 oz.

Largest tomato

Monte Lovelace of Syracuse

1 lb, 3.8 oz.

 

Jumbo onions

Arlan Liesemeyer of Syracuse

Best red delicious apples

Alex Buddenberg of Palmyra

Best golden delicious apples

Becca Berner of Syracuse

Best red potatoes

Tom Block of Unadilla

Sweet corn

Ike and Hayes West of Unadilla

 

Snap beans

David Husak Nebraska City

 

 

Best garden basket

Dan Swanson of Nebraska City